Facebook Video Viewers Watch … In Silence

Have you ever found yourself watching video clips on Facebook without sound?

And, if so, do you watch the video, in silence, all the way through?

Today I watched a video posted by AJ+ all the way through… without sound.

85 percent of video content on Facebook is viewed without sound, according to Digiday. Writer Sahil Patel explains, “Most users’ news feeds are now inundated with short videos that feature text or captions narrating what’s being shown on screen. While most of these videos feature narration or some form of background music, the intent is to make it easy for people to consume the information presented in the videos without needing to turn the sound on.”

Tech Insider and NowThis have tuned into this phenomenon, producing video that, as Patel says, includes key ingredients that consistently grab eyeballs: “a striking visual or message up front followed by a text-heavy explanation of the content.”

Here’s an example of a recent post from NowThis: a video about how music artists like Neil Young are upset that presidential candidate Donald Trump has used their songs on his campaign trail.

For content created exclusively for Facebook, sound is an option rather than a requirement. However, for video ads, Patel writes that it’s a bit different.

“When measuring the performance of campaigns on a cost-per-view basis, nine times out of 10, YouTube will come in at a lower price than Facebook, according to Nick Pappas, CEO of SwellShark. (A hurdle here is that Facebook only charges advertisers for three-second or 10-second views, whereas on YouTube, advertisers can pay based on completed views.)”

What has your experience been with Facebook video ads compared to original video content directly uploaded to Facebook? Are you seeing these trends?